Skincare routine

Hello everyone,

So I've decided that blogging everyday is a little hard, so this week I thought I'd skip the days and start off on Tuesday. I'll be posting every Tuesday and Thursday to make it easier on myself and for you guys. 

Today I have my skincare routine, I was going to post a separate blog about my DIY face mask and scrub, but then I thought that they're both skincare so it can go in my skincare blog! 

Morning skincare routine-

I start off with my facial wash. This is a new one I'm trying out and it's Sainsburys own brand. From memory I think it cost £2.50, but I could be wrong. It contains vitamin E and avocado oil which helps to nourish and condition your skin. 

I then use my dr.organic organic snail gel. I know this sounds gross but it feels amazing on the skin. It contains Helix Aspersa Muller is a unique substance which snails produce to quickly regenerate their own she'll and skin. It contains a balance of beneficial components including Glycolic Acid, Collagen, Elastin, Allantoin, Vitamins and Minerals. I got this in my YouBeauty Discovery box, which is actually a pretty cool box. You get to choose 2 items for £6.95 p+p included, and you get 2 samples as well. It's very much worth the investment. 

After I have let the snail gel absorb into my skin, I apply my eye cream. I have done a review on my eye cream and moisturiser so you could go and check that out! 

I then apply my moisturiser once the snail gel is completely absorbed. A few times I've put too much snail gel on and then I've gone to apply my moisturiser and it runs off, so only use a small amount and wait till it's fully absorbed! 

I will then apply lipbalm and wait 10 minutes before doing my makeup. 

Evening skincare routine- 

I do pretty much exactly the same as the morning, but I start off using my Micellar water. I use this to remove my eye makeup and any lip products I have on. I really like using the Micellar water as I don't have to rub my eyes when removing the makeup. I hold a soaked cotton pad over my eye, pressing gently on my lid. I will then start moving the pad from side to side very slowly to loosen up the mascara. Once the mascara is loose enough, I sweep the pad down my lashes and keep repeating this, using a new pad if needed, till all my mascara is off. 

For a first cleanse I will use my cleansing lotion. I spoke about this in my April favourites so I won't go into too much detail about it. I put a small amount into my hand and warm to product up. I then apply it all over my face using circular motions. Once it is all over my face, I then take damp cotton pads to remove the products. 

I then used my facial wash as a second cleanse to make sure all the makeup and cleansing lotion has been removed. 

Then I use my snail gel, eye cream, night cream and lipbalm. 

While the night cream is sinking into my skin (it's a very thick cream) I put my hair up and it ends up sticking to my face and it feels horrible! 

I'm not one for using face masks and I only exfoliate when I feel like my face needs it, so I wanted to try and make my own mask and scrub at home. I went on Pinterest and came across a mask and scrub. 

When I was at college, we were taught to exfoliate first and then do the mask at the end of the facial routine. So when I did these the other day that's the order I did it is. 

Face Scrub- 

You will need 1 tsp honey, 1 tsp olive oil (or any other oil you enjoy using) and 2 tsp sugar. I mixed these together till it became a consistency which I could scrub but wasn't too difficult to use. If this doesn't work for you then add another tsp of olive oil. 

Honey is anti-bacterial so helps to fight spots, olive oil is conditioning on the skin and the sugar acts as the abrasive component. 

Face Mask- 

You will need 1 tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp cinnamon and 2 tsp honey. 

Now I'm not too sure why you use nutmeg and cinnamon as it didn't say on the pin, but it felt great on my skin and my skin felt so soft after using this mask. You don't want the mask to be too runny as you won't be able to do anything and will have to sit in the same spot praying it doesn't drip off of your face! 

I left this on for 15 minutes (the pin said you can leave it on for half an hour) but it started to tingle my face and I wasn't too keen on the sensation. If you don't get a tingling sensation then leave it on for the full half an hour, but if like me you do, is advise to leave it on for 10-15 minutes. 

Sara xxx

Where to find me:

Instagram- sara_harpum

Twitter- saralouise__95

April favourites

Hello everyone, 

If you follow my Instagram (sara_harpum) you would have seen my post this morning, you would have seen that I was planning my April favourites and I wrote in the caption 'I think I'm going to try and blog everyday'. So that's what I'm going to try and do! 

I've decided that when I write my monthly favourites, I'm going to divide them into sections. I've come up with 5 sections; beauty, hair care, skincare, food and other. The first three sections are the basics you'd find in a monthly favourite (with a beauty blogger or YouTuber) and the other two sections were ones I thought would be good to include, because I love food and I thought that 'other' would include things like clothes and shoes etc. 

So for beauty I have been loving the L'Oréal true match foundation in N1 (Ivory). I was rather late jumping on the band wagon with this foundation because other drugstore foundations I've tried have either been too orange or too pink for my skin. This shade matches me perfectly and I'm glad I picked it up! 

Another beauty favourite is mehr from MAC. A few months back my mum said she'd treat me to a MAC lipstick and I had narrowed it down to velvet teddy and mehr. I had decided I wanted mehr but they didn't have it in stock, so I chose velvet teddy. Every time I then went into a MAC, I would ask if they had mehr and every time they said no. I was so gutted and then one day I went into a big department store which sold MaC and asked, and they had one! Every since that day I have always worn mehr when I've gone out. 

For hair care I've been loving the Aussie Miracle Shine shampoo and conditioner. I love the smell of this shampoo and conditioner and unlike any other brand, this makes my hair smell great for ages after using it! 

For skincare I have been enjoying the Nivea Daily Essentials Refreshing cleansing lotion for normal to combination skin. I use this for a first cleanse when removing my makeup. I take a small amount and rub it in my hands to want it up, then apply it all over my face- except my eyes, and then use damp cotton pads to remove the lotion. 

To remove my eye makeup I have been using the Nivea Daily Essential sensitive 3 in 1 Micella cleansing water. I apply a decent amount to a cotton pad and hold it against my eye for 30 seconds to a minute. I then wiggle the pad along my lashes to help loosen the mascara up further and then wipe away gently. This removes my eye makeup fantastically! 

I haven't had any favourite foods but one this I did continually eat (which was insanely bad) was McDonalds. I was eating this literally every other night as they had that monopoly promotion on. I was determined to win the holiday but the only thing I got out of it was weight gain and less money.

In the 'other' section, I have been loving my Victoria's Secret scandalous perfume. This was a Christmas present from my boyfriend but I LOVE how it smells! Trust me, if you get the chance, go and smell it! I know Christmas was months ago, but I use it every time i go out! 

I will be posting another blog tomorrow. Make sure you keep an eye out for it! 

Sara xxx

Where to find me- 

Instagram- sara_harpum

Twitter- saralouise__95

Nivea moisturiser and eye cream review

Hello everyone, 

Now I'm not one of these people who moisturises everyday religiously (I know, it's naughty and I should) but I'm trying too! I've tried lots of different moisturisers in the past and they've never seemed to work for me. I mean I'd apply them to my skin and before I was done rubbing it in, the products had already sunk into my skin- and 5 blobs on my face wasn't a good way for it to be sinking in! 

I've struggled for ages to find the right moisturiser. I've tried oil free ones due to my combination skin, I've tried hydrating ones because I thought my problems was that skin was too dry, but none of those worked! I'd apply them both morning and night, and in the morning it seemed to sink in too quickly and then when I woke up in the morning after applying it before bed, my face was a massive gease ball!! It wasn't nice! 

So one day I was out food shopping with my mum and I mentioned I wanted a new moisturiser and I wanted to start using an eye cream. Now a lot of the higher end products cost a lot of money (and I thought Nivea was a higher end product) but when I got to the moisturisers and eye creams I noticed that Nivea had their products on offer, meaning I could get a day cream, a night cream and an eye cream for the price of 1 higher end product! When I got home I couldn't wait to try to eye cream and the night cream! 

That night I did my skincare routine and then applied the eye cream and then the night cream. I apply the eye cream first as its a lighter formula so sinks into my skin quicker. I then went to bed excited to see the results in the morning. When I woke up I ran straight for the mirror to see if my face was all greasy and it wasn't! I was so over the moon that I had finally found a products which didn't leave me waking up greasy! My skin felt so soft after using the night cream so I couldn't wait to try the day cream. 

I applied the eye cream and the day cream and let it sink in. My skin felt soft and looked great! I then applied my makeup and went about my daily business. When it came to taking my makeup off I noticed that the lines under my eyes weren't a deep and my makeup hadn't settled in the lines as much anymore (I know, I'm only 19 and I have lines under my eyes :( it sucks!) My skin also didn't look as oily as it used too which is another thing I suffer with due to having combination skin.

I would recommend these products 100%! 

Sara xoxo

Where to find me:

Instagram- sara_harpum

Twitter- saralouise__95

Blog planner board

Hello everyone, 

So recently I've been lacking in blog writing (I know, I'm sorry!). I decided to take a stand for this and have my blog ideas visually in front of me! I looked up on YouTube and Pinterest and google images 'blog planners' and of course lots of diaries came up, which was what I was using and as I didn't have it in front of me, I was forgetting about my blog! 

Another thing which came up in my search was a planner board. I thought this was interesting and a great idea because it meant that I was able to plan my blogs for the week ahead and have them in front of me! A lot of the images on Google were ones you could print off and probably stick on a cork board, but I decided I wanted to use something different. 

I looked around my room and found an old photo frame which I wasn't using and had used when I was in college to write down my timetable. I thought to myself this was perfect! The frame is black so o am going to change the colour, I'm just not sure what colour yet so let me know what colour I should paint the frame. 

Now as you can see it's looking a little boring, so I decided to buy so coloured whiteboard markers so that it was easy to rub off and because they come in a variety of colours. The pack I got contains black, blue, red and green. They cost £1 from asda, so if this is something you like the idea of then go and buy them!! 

I haven't decided which days I'm going to blog, but it'll be 2 days outta the week. I'm thinking maybe Tuesday and Thursday as I can write and plan blogs over the weekend for the following week. I may change it to 3 days a week but for the moment I've decided 2 days will be a good amount (this week will have 3 because of this blog). 

This blog planner board will eventually be hanging up on my wall above my desk, I just haven't got round to doing that yet, but I will soon! 

Sara xxx

Where to find me- 

Instagram: sara_harpum 

Twitter: saralouise__95

Morning routine

Hello everyone, 

On Friday I met my nan and then went to my boyfriends house. I thought it would be a good time to do a morning routine. 

I started my morning off by calling up justfab to get a refund. Long story shory, they don't tell you about a membership till after you've signed up, and if you don't skip the month they charge you £35. I had skipped the month, but according to them I didn't, but they still gave me a refund and I canceled my membership. 

After I had called them up I went for a shower. I used TRESemmé vitamin E moisture rich shampoo and conditioner. I really like the smell of this shampoo and conditioner but it doesn't last long. Once I had finished in the shower, I went into my room and used my Nivea daily essential Q10 plus anti-wrinkle eye cream and Nivea daily essential light moisturising day cream for normal to combination skin. Once I have let that sink in I do my makeup. I apply the products which I mentioned the other day, I just didn't apply eyeshadow and I've changed mascara to the too faced mascara. 

I then picked out what I was going to wear. I chose black leggings with black ankle boots (the ones I wore in London) and a black dress. I didn't have any time to do anything to my hair so I used the cars A/C to dry in whilst on the way to the train station. When I arrived in Maidstone, we went for lunch (as it had gone 12). We choose to go to Pizza Hut which was delicious. It was also noisy as a bunch of year 11 had finished school so we're having lunch with loud music playing. I enjoyed the music obviously but not the screeching of 16 year olds! 

After we had lunch, we went to boots. I have a bit of an addition with boots and will look at all the makeup without buying anything. I actually needed to buy some miceller water from garnier. They have a smaller bottle of it which was perfect for leaving at my boyfriends house. They also had some false nails on sale for £2 so I also got them. After we had been to boots we just walked around and looked in other shops. We then went for a coffee and sat there for a while just passing the time for the buses. We then went to primark and I got some trousers, a top which is pink and says 'I only speak chic'. I also got some flats which I left at my boyfriends house so I have some shoes at his (as I always seem to pack the wrong shoes!) 

Once we had been to primark I went to catch my bus. I was waiting for ages and was getting really frustrated as it takes ages on the bus to get to my boyfriends anyway. The bus finally turned up and my boyfriend was waiting for me at the bus stop where I got off. We went to his house and just relaxed and chilled out. We then went out to the shops for dinner but ended up getting a pot noodle as it was coming up 11pm. After we had eaten them, we went upstairs and finished watching the other guys as we didn't finish it all last Sunday. By the time it had finished it was 1:30am so we went straight to sleep as we were really tired. 

I'll be posting a review blog tomorrow on the eye cream and both moisturisers I got the other week. 

Speak to you later, 

Sara xoxo

Brighton grwm

Hello everyone, 

Sorry I haven't blogged in a few days. I've been really busy. I had a job interview on Monday and I've been out and about the rest of the time. 

I've decided to combine two of the blogs I was going to do for you into one. I was going to do a get ready with me for the drum and bass event I went too and a half up half down hairstyle blog (I know that sounds easy but I thought why not). I'm putting these two together because that's how I wore my hair on Sunday so it made sense to put them together. 

My day started really late, my boyfriend and I didn't get up till almost 1 in the afternoon because we were shattered from London the day before. Once I was awake we went and got brunch (I guess because of the time) and sat downstairs talking and on our phones. I was playing games and checking social media (sara_harpum for Instagram and saralouise__95 for Twitter if you want to follow).

I started getting ready by having a shower so my hair could air dry, so I wasn't putting loads of heat on my hair. I exfoliated and washed my face while in the shower so I had a nice, clean base when it came to doing my makeup later on. While my hair was air drying we started to watch a film seeing as we didn't have much time before we needed to get ready and because we had wasted the day away by being lazy! We chose to watch the other guys and ordered a Chinese (because we're lazy and couldn't be bothered to cook, plus it made sense as we were going out). 

Once the food had arrived and the film was on, I started to do my makeup. I started on my eyes as I wanted to make sure there wouldn't be any fall out. I used MACs paint pot in painterly to prime my eyes and then set it with my face powder. I do this because I have really oily eyelids and I find doing this helps to prevent my shadows for creasing. All over my lid I placed sin from the naked palette by urban decay. In my crease I used tease from the naked 2 palette and took blackheart from the naked 3 palette on the outter V of my eye in a C shape and blended it all together. I was kinda going for a smokey eye without being too smokey and I liked how it turned out. I took tease again to soften everything up and to define my crease even more. I then took blackheart and sweeped it across my bottom lash line. Then I went on to fill in my brows. For this I used the soap and glory archery pencil and went over the top with my Anastasia Beverly Hills dipbrow pomade in soft brown. 

Once I had done my eyes and brows, I went on to do the rest of my face makeup. I used the benefit porefessional primer so that my makeup would stay on all night. I then used my L'Oréal true match foundation with a damp makeup sponge and applied that all over my face. For extra coverage on all the spots which have appeared out of nowhere on my forehead and chin I used the bourjois healthy mix concealer. I set all my makeup with the maybelline matte maker powder. For contour I used the bourjois bronzing powder and highlighter. I highlighted my cheekbones with the highlighter in the kit. I like this highlighter as it's subtle and doesn't look too 'in your face'. If I had wanted an 'in your face' highlighter, I would have used my Bobbi Brown highlighter in beige. I applied peach Melba blush by natural collection to the apples of my cheeks. I like this blusher for all year round as it suits my skin tone well. 

Once my face makeup was complete I then went on to my lips. I first prepped my lips with Lush cosmetics mint julips. I'm still trying this product out so can't give a mini review but so far I like it. After prepping my lips I used some lip balm till I decided to put lipstick on later. 

After I had completed my makeup, I then ate the Chinese and watched the film. When it was almost time to leave I did my hair. I chose to do this after we had eaten as I didn't want to do my hair then slouch on the bed while watching the film and mess it up. I started my straightening my hair as I prefer this hairstyle with straight hair (if you prefer curly hair then use curly hair with it. I did your standard half up half down style after straightening my hair. After putting my hair up, I sorted my fringe out and then lifted little sections in the ponytail (if that's what it's called. Probably because it's still a small ponytail), and I started to backcomb the sections. I didn't go crazy on the back combing as my longer fringe pieces stick up (as I found out Sunday!) I teased it slightly so it looked like it had more volume in the top. I took about 4/5 sections of hair and did this till I was satisfied with the results.

For my outfit I wore; 

  • Black and white print trousers from primark (£8)

  • Black top with lace sides from forever 21 (£7) 

  • Cardigan from forever 21 (I brought this last year so don't know the price)

  • Bag from forever 21 (£15) 

  • Nike Air Force 1 (I brought these a few years ago so don't know the price) 

I'm hoping to post a morning routine tomorow. If it's not up tomorow night, it'll be up Saturday morning. 

Speak to you soon, 

Sara xoxo

OOTD

Hello everyone, 

I know I didn't post yesterday but seeing as I posted twice the day before I kinda thought it was okay not to post a blog. Plus the blog was going to be a first impressions blog but I've decided to try it out to give you a full review. 

Anyway today I went up to London with my boyfriend and decided today would be the perfect day to write an OOTD blog. OOTD stands for outfit of the day (in case some of you didn't know, but I'm sure you all knew that!) I thought I'd tell you where I got each item from and how much they cost (so that you all know if you want to go and buy anything). 

My coat is from primark. I brought this yesterday as it was meant to rain today and I haven't got a little rainmac. It was £9 so I thought why not seeing as it can be packed away into one of the pockets, I thought it would come in handy during the spring and summer months. It isn't very warm so I'd advise wearing something thick underneath. I was frozen today! 

My dress is from Zara, I also brought it yesterday so today's the first time I've worn it. I love this dress! I wasn't too sure at first because it's ever flowy and I prefer dresses which are fitted. It cost £25.99.

My shoes are from Deichmann. I used to work there so I got them for 20%. I think originally they cost £24.99 but I could be wrong so don't hold me to it (I will find out the definite price and change this blog if needs be). They're just plain black lace up boots and I love them! They're so comfy to wear and keep my feet warm. 

I will be posting a sorta get ready with me blog tomorow. I'm going out in the evening to a drum and bass event in Brighton with my boyfriend and his friends so I'll be showing you my makeup, outfit and hair! 

Speak later 

Sara xoxo

L'Oréal true match foundation review

Hello everyone, 

I have been trying out the L'Oréal true match foundation lately as I've noticed its used by a lot of youtubers. I've wanted to try it for a long time but always gave second thoughts because I have combination skin. I get really oily in my t-zone but I'm dry on my forehead, cheeks and nose. 

I always have an issue with trying to figure out what colour I am in the drugstore. It's a lot easier to match your foundation at somewhere like MAC or Dior as they sit you down and try a bunch of foundation shades on you, but at the drugstore you just have to eyeball it and sorta guess. I picked the shade N1 (Ivory) which actually matches my skin tone perfectly, which is surprising as I struggle to find foundations which matches my neck to my face (my face is darker than my neck, weird I know). I do feel like I could have gone a shade darker but I didn't want to risk it and once I got home and tried it out, it matched really well and evened out my odd situation. 

This foundation has a very good coverage, and can have more that one layer to increase the coverage you already have. I pumped it twice onto the back of my hand and applied it with my damp real techniques sponge. The two pumps covered the whole of my face, and it surprised me as I thought I'd need more as it didn't look like much. After I have applied the first layer, I use half a pump as concealer. I did this as I wanted to see how well the coverage was. I did this under my eyes and on all my problem areas. It covered it great, but I feel like if I want a more heavy coverage then I will use concealer. I then finish the rest of my makeup. 

I found this foundation works really well with my combination skin. It doesn't stick to the dry patches and it stays matte for most of the day. 

Speak later 

Sara xoxo