My recent beauty buys

It's been a while since I done one of these kind of posts, unfortunately I just haven't been buying loads of beauty products to do a haul like post. Over the last month or so I've bought a few things, some which were repurchases and some new. I kind of forgot how much I love shopping for anything beauty related but not how much money I would spend!

See what new products I've bough and what products I've repurchased....

Last minute secret santa gift ideas under £10

Have you agreed and decided to take part in a secret Santa at your work place and your not too sure what to get the person? This can be real fun like who doesn't love a little gift just before Christmas but on the other hand it can be difficult especially if you don't really know the person that well. I've created a little list of some ideas and as the title gives away, under £10!

This list has both his and her ideas, you may even like something for yourself or to put in as a stocking filler for someone else.

Fenty Beauty

So a few weeks ago me and one of the girls I work with decided to take a drive to London visit Harvey Nichols to get the highly raved about Fenty Beauty foundation. I know I'm late purchasing it but I think that's a good thing as I wanted to wait for the hype to die down a bit and not be so manic when I go.

We met up with one of my other friends when we got to London and all made our way to Knightsbridge tube station. As soon as we came out of the station we were directly at the entrance but to my surprise there was a Fenty Beauty queue. It was over heard that there has been a queue all day every day since it launched!.We waited around 45 minutes I believe, it felt like it was forever, luckily it wasn't cold! As there was a queue only 1 to 2 people could get seen at a time but we made sure we all got seen together so we could all make sure we got our correct colour.

The Birthday Month

Oh my! November has been an extremely busy month for me for a long time which is why I haven't actually posted anything, I've either been out of Ipswich or out the country. It made a change do have so many plans in one go!

For those wondering (and don't have me on snapchat), it was my birthday on the 1st and I've had a week and various other days off throughout the month. Keep reading to see what I got up to and how I celebrated my birthday this year ! :)

A few new things for Autumn

After going through my wardrobe on my week off, getting rid of clothes I haven't worn in over a year and know I'm not ever going to wear again or even wear for a first time. I try to go through my clothes well everything at least twice a year and I either pop some items which have barely been worn and still have a lot of use left on my Depop Store (search JanayAndre) or I give them to charity. I created some space in my wardrobe and as I was going through it I realised I could do with some more tops to wear casually out and to chill.

Me and my mum popped into Matalan a couple times in the last week, we forget we have one in Ipswich because of the location. I only went in for a pair of jeans and bought more than I intended to, oops! I pretty much have two new outfits that I can mix and match. I have always found the materials used of a good quality and know that they will last.

Empties .. Love or hate part 1

Towards the end of summer I found myself finishing quite a few products and I've kept majority of them aside and thought I would review them and give my thoughts, some loved and will be reused but some would not be my immediate choice. This will be in two parts as I'm coming to an end with some more products.

Where have I been?

Hey, I hope everyone is well?!

I just wanted to give a mini mid year update (all be it a little later then I planned) and an apology as to why I've been so quiet and not as active with uploading any posts like I have been previously. I suppose I've taken a little break hoping to get back on track soon as I love trying new things out and letting you guys know what I think and what I'm getting up to.

Mac's Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation

So I've had my eye on Mac's Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation, it's actually been sat in my safari list on my phone so I didn't forget which one I had been looking at. It's a powder and foundation in one with medium to full coverage, now I'm not sure if this is just me but I don't see how a powder has a full coverage, maybe it depends on how you apply it? I'm not sure but I was intrigued to try this as it's described as a foundation I thought this could be ideal on the days where I don't wanted to wear a liquid foundation but I still want something on my face.

Anywhooo I went into Mac last week and I got matched up with NW25 which is actually darker than the Mineralize powder I have in light plus, I slyly think it wasn't right for me from the start but I do use it. It was applied with the 135 large flat powder brush and when I looked in the mirror I could see it immediately went matte and the colour was just exactly what I wanted, not too pale and not too dark.

Weekend in Manchester

A couple of weeks ago me and some of the girls went to Manchester to surprise Naquelle. She moved up there a couple of years ago or so and we hadn't all yet made a trip there for a girls weekend. We had a group chat with all of us and it was discussed of doing something towards the end of May as it was Naquelle's and Shonola's birthdays (both are very close) and there was talks of going Manchester but it didn't really go any further, little did Naquelle know we had created a separate group chat and decided we would go down for the weekend and surprise her. The main group chat things would be mentioned again about doing something even going London but none of us really responded to it, it was all an act, an act we all played our parts very well, Natalie's sarcasm just comes naturally. We would go back to the "secret" group and discuss things we should say and have reasons if we couldn't do that weekend. We had Naquelle's boyfriend involved (thanks to Sharna and Shonola) and he was in on it all making sure she had time off work, she had no idea. 

It came to the Friday and this was the day. There was a major surprise for Naquelle as her boyfriend had proposed to her in the morning! How cute, romantic, sweet, perfect, I could go on but you get what I'm trying to say. Sharna drove down and we did have some jokes along the way, we got stuck in traffic and someone spotted a good looking guy in the car behind so we made a sign on tissue (don't worry we didn't ruin a lipstick we had a pen lol) I think it said "we think your buff", me and Natalie held it up so he could see it and well we made his day, he was smiling and giggling slightly lol. Sharna is the sign still in your car?! So a few hours later we arrived, it was time to surprise her even more so we ran in her house screaming with balloons and party poppers. The facial expression was priceless she had absolutely no idea we was coming at all. It was safe to say we planned a surprise and no one or nothing gave it away. We done it!

Lip care

Today I wanted to share what lip products I use on a daily basis and some I love and some I've tried and tested but are not my favourites. Using lip products throughout the day I think is very important, they stop your lips from being dry, cracked and sore which there is nothing worse then when they feel like this and they don't look great either.

In the morning as I wake up and before I go bed I always apply Vaseline, I think the one by my bed at the moment is the aloe vera one and throughout the day I sometimes have a choice, always another Vaseline but then maybe a carmex one. I honestly cannot leave my house without some lip product or something, I feel lost without it.

If I know I'm going out and will be wearing a lipstick that can be drying I try to use Lush's lip scrub in bubble-gum (smells and tastes delicious lol), it has jojoba oil which is super moisturising, before I apply it. After I've taken off the lipstick I tend to use something which is a bit thicker to put the moisture back in.

Primark Highlight & Glow kit

One of the girls I work with actually found this Highlight and Glow Kit on line one day and I was super shocked that Primark have brought out a highlight & glow palette, we was both like we have to get our hands on this and see if it's any good. Primark have really stepped up their game within the beauty world, selling more than affordable products and are great if your just starting out buying make up. They have a broad range of products from eyelashes to tanning products and everything in between.  I have one of their PS Pro matte primers which was sent in a GlossyBox, I love it for every day use but do you think I can find it anywhere?!

I was just browsing in my local Primark and I thought I would check out the make up section and see if they actually stocked in and to my amazement they did picked it up straight away and made sure no one had opened it and put their fingers in it and made a mess of it! I couldn't wait to get home and swatch it. The packing of this is great, you know what it is straight away. Inside there is 4 decent sized pans, all of them are different colours, no two are similar which to me is a good thing as they have given options and will be suitable for most skin tones. There is a little picture on the insides of where the highlighter should be placed on your face along with the colours and names down the side. 

I think personally my only downfall to this is there is no mirror inside but this is something very minor, and personal preference, as for the price of only £4 you can't expect it to have everything you want in it. As you can see below the 4 colours swatched.

Sunbeam - this is more of white/champagne one.

Siesta - I find this to be a light rose gold which would be ideal if you want it a more subtle glow.

Sundown - I'm not yet sure how I would describe this one, it's like a gold colour but has a tinge of orange? Or is that just me?

Pool Party - Now this is more of your bronze highlight and would be perfect if you want that bronze glow but I think you may have to be careful how much is applied with this one it looks like it could leave your skin looking a little muddy.

L-R Sunbeam, Siesta, Sundown and Pool Party

Have you tried this or any other products from Primark's beauty range?

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April's Love Me Beauty

I've been subscribed to Love Me Beauty for a few months now and I must say for a beauty subscription box/bag I really quite like it. You pay Around £13 including postage per month and you get 60 credits to use in their store, everything is of different value, the products are not always full size they are more like deluxe samples but they are so ideal and perfect for on the go and your trying the product before you buy it full size. They often have a feature brand each month within their edit which has a selection of products from that particular brand, for example they've had: Make Up Forever, Kat Von D and Charlotte Tilbury, it feels like a treat to try these brands as some of them can be pricey.

Each month you will receive an email to let you know once you're credits have been renewed and a link to shop the edit. You have to use a minimum of 60 credits per order but you can buy additional credits if you want if there is something else that. Some months there will be products from previous edits but sometimes these are handy as they are mainly of smaller value and can bulk up your order. I do look forward to receiving my order as I find the products in the edits are really good quality, also they come in a little zip up pouch with different patterns/colours each month.

This month I had a look through and I decided to pick the following:

Eco Tools Full Powder and Precision Blush, Dr Bragi Sheet Intensive Treatment and Popband hair band.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Nicole Guerriero Glow Kit

Soo would you believe it or not this was my first Anastasia Beverly Hills purchase ever! Where have I been, hiding under a rock?! I've often heard good things about ABH and their products but I think I was put of ordering as I wanted to actually see the products first and not to be disappointed as some of the products are not cheap also I'm a little cautious of ordering make up on line unless I've bought it before due to the colour swatches you can never really quite tell.

Weekend with my family

How beautiful has the weekend been?! The sun has been out but not too warm, just lovely. I think almost everyone has now come out of the winter hibernation. I'm just hoping that the bank holiday next weekend is just as nice too!

I was supposed to go London Friday after work and spend the weekend but after a long and busy week I didn't make it and I stayed in Ipswich. Friday evening I popped into town and met up with some people from work for drinks, I didn't have a heavy night of drinking but it was a late one, there was some crazy snaps going around.

New shoes and more

A couple of weeks ago I popped into town to pick up the L'Oreal matte foundation and to look for some pumps as the weather is getting a little bit warmer and not so much boot weather. A few other things were bought as well, things that I didn't intend on buying but couldn't resist. I like do buy a few things at a time instead of buying loads all in one go, one because buying loads mean achy arms and I need to find space to put the new stuff!

My new Zara bag

So in my last post I did say I was eyeing up a faux fur finish bag from Zara, the style has been around for some time now and they have different prints/textures. I first see this possibly about a year ago and I loved it straight away but I never bought it but every so often I'd think about it because there has been occasions where I could of used it instead of taking my big bag.

Westfields mini shopping haul

So I done some shopping last time I was in London, not a massive shop but I picked up a few things from Westfield's Stratford. Every so often when I'm in the city I will pick up a few things mainly to do with make up as living in Ipswich we don't have brands like Mac, NYX or Nars so I often find myself at a make up counter in one of the department stores or getting my make up done in Mac. Not everything I bought was for me or things I needed but why not treat yourself now and again!

I will most likely go on another mini shopping haul more around clothes but I think another bag purchase will be on the horizon, I've been eyeing a bag from Zara and I now realty want it..

New make up tools

Couple of weekends ago I bought some new/replaced/additional make up applicators, I always find the application is always key to applying make up and my collection is slowly growing the more I buy different products I find myself buying more brushes (I think it's more of an excuse to go shopping). I don't always find that the more expensive the better the applicator will be more times it's about the quality of it, the materials used. I am always on the hunt for brushes if you have any you love, leave me a comment below....

Primark make up brush cleaner review

Firstly I want to say I am so sorry for the lack of posts in the last few weeks, unfortunately my anxiety has wrapped me up in a bubble lately and I have not had any umph to want to write a post (most upset about this) but I'm back!


For a while now I've wanted to find a brush cleaner which was suitable to use in between the deep cleans that was easily used and something which could be used on the go if I'm away. I wanted something in a liquid form if possible so not much is used at one time. I did notice that Mac do one, not in a spray form and from some reviews I've seen this is good but I wanted to speak to someone about this before buying it and I haven't been to a Mac store recently to do so. After some time if I'm honest I had stopped looking for one until I was in my local Primark and I was trying to find a their PS Pro mattifying primer but I came across a spray make up brush cleaner. It was a bargain for just £2 and I thought I'd give it a try.

Clothing wishlist

Sorry I've been a little quiet lately, getting back in to the swing of things with work, getting back into the gym, started a separate boot camp class as well and it was my uncles birthday a couple weeks ago we had a family meal and then the weekend after a surprise party was arranged for him. Just feel like I haven't had any me time :( I'm happy to say this weekend I will be relaxing!

If I'm honest I couldn't tell you the last time I went shopping and bought loads of clothes possibly towards the end of summer? I have bought the odd thing but they have been more essentials like vest tops to wear under shirts, socks or buying the same pair of jeans you already own because they are so comfortable (I am bad for buying the same thing in all the colours or just having 3 pairs of the same item). A few things have recently caught my eye online and I thought I'd share with you what I'm liking at the moment.

Goodbye 2016 and hello 2017

Is it me or does it seem like Christmas and New Year's was ages ago?

I may be one of a few who has not made a new years resolution/s, I personally feel if you want to change something in your life then do it when you are ready and not because it's the new year.

I did change a few things in my life for which I feel more positive for. Last year around March/April I made a big change in my life and got a new job, it was such a big step for me as I was in my previous job 5 and a half years so of course you get into a routine. I left because I wasn't happy and at times being there made my anxiety and depression worse, don't get me wrong there was good days and I met some lovely people but the bad days were getting more and more and I had to make a change. It was also interfering with my social and personal life, having to work weekends, bank holidays and Christmas/ New Year's, it just wasn't for me anymore. Since then I have been a lot more happier, I simply work Monday to Friday, I'm able to have more of a social life and see more of my family. I also joined a gym which I've wanted to join one for quite some time but didn't want to do it on my own so me and one of my friends go. I joined the gym because I want to be more healthier, I eat better then I used to (I still enjoy the odd take away now and again) and you know what I actually like the gym, over Christmas we did have a break and I missed it (what is wrong with me?!).

For this next year like I said earlier I have not made any resolutions or targets for anything, I just plan to live my life and be happy.



Have you made any resolutions?

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Beauty favourites of 2016

Happy New Year everyone!! I hope you all had a lovely time. I haven't made any new yeas resolutions but 2017 will be a year I want to be happy and I wish for all my friends and family the same.

On the last day of 2016 I posted a video to my YouTube channel. It took a lot of courage to take the video and post it as I am very shy and I hate hearing the sound of my own voice (when editing). I hope in the future I will make more of these, make sure you check it out and give it a thumbs up and also subscribe.

 

 

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