Eurovision Style Round Up

A week ago today we saw Malmö host the Eurovision Song Contest 2013, a chance for Eurofans to celebrate the musical highlight of the year. But of course, this is a beauty blog, so today we're going to have a bit of a round up of the weird and wonderful styles we saw this year...

Outfit

I fell in love with Raquel from El Sueño de Morfeo's beautiful yellow dress. It complimented her skin tone perfectly and gave her a sweet, bohemian feminine look. And a special mention must go to her hair, which is pretty much the hairstyle I wore all the way through high school.

On the other hand, we have Swedish comedienne and host of this year's contest, Petra Mede, whose dress from one of the two semi finals speaks for itself. I love Petra, but seriously, this is hideous. Toilet roll holder, anybody?

Nails

Of course this could only ever be one person - the ultimate Bridezilla from Finland, Krista. I'm unsure of the exact nail design she wore on the night, but I'm confident it was something like the above photo. You all know I love nail art, and I so wish I'd had time to try out some Marry Me themed nails before the contest. 

Effort

Well, we've all seen the wacky costumes of the past (Ukraine 2007, I'm looking at you) and this year saw its fair share of craziness, but there were a couple of people who made genuine effort. I kind of feel that Aliona from Moldova somehow managed to stand out with her crazy light show dress, yet at the same time not look tacky (until it turned into a fire-themed dress, that is). I'm not sure about the La Roux-esque hair, but somehow it all just works.

The 'oh dears'

Oh, Amandine, I know your song was supposed to be all arty and full of angst, but would it have been so hard to brush your hair? And as for the leather-look dress, well, I have no words.

And finally, we have Moje 3 from Serbia, who are evidently really into the pastel trend. Either that, or they got lost en route to perform at a little girl's birthday party. This is definitely a case of 'less is more', unless you want to look like a sweet shop worker pantomime character.

Did you watch Eurovision this year? Which styles caught your eye? Let me know in the comments below!

Thanks for reading,

Rachel x

Twitter: rachelizabethxo

Personal blog: estoy mejor sin ti

Instagram: iRachey

Email: rachel.soshedances@gmail.com
Tumblr: lookintothestorm.tumblr.com
YouTube: soshedancesxo

Worth Hunting Down: Orly 'Glowstick'

What? -  Orly nail polish
Shade? - Glowstick, from the Feel the Vibe collection (now discontinued, boo!)
Price? - £6.99 for 18ml
Where? - From this Ebay seller

I would describe Glowstick as the perfect highlighter yellow. And I've always liked yellow highlighters the best, so chances were I'd love the colour anyway. Whilst it's true there are other companies selling neon yellow polishes, I kind of feel that Orly really missed a trick here. With their expansion into Boots selling minis (which aren't exactly worth their price but that's another story) and with no drugstore companies selling good neon yellows, I think this shade could have been good for them. 

With summer coming up, I think this is going to be one of my favourite polishes and for the £8 that I paid I definitely feel like I got my money's worth. In these photos, I applied two coats of Essie's 'Blanc' underneath to give it a proper base and found this the best way to get the most out of the colour. After all, we'd usually use a highlighter on white paper wouldn't we?

Do you like a good neon? Have you tried this or anything similar? Can you recommend a good Glowstick dupe? Let me know in the comments below!

Thanks for reading,

Rachel x

Twitter: rachelizabethxo

Personal blog: estoy mejor sin ti

Instagram: iRachey

Email: rachel.soshedances@gmail.com
Tumblr: lookintothestorm.tumblr.com
YouTube: soshedancesxo

Worth Hunting Down: Maybelline Dream Touch Blush

What? -  Maybelline Dream Touch Blush
Shades? - 02 Peach, 06 Berry, 07 Plum, 08 Apricot
Price? - £6.49 for 63 grams
Where? - Boots or Superdrug

I couldn't do a series on products worth getting your hands on without including my ultimate surprise holy grail product. I first purchased one of these on a whim because I struggle with powder blushes staying put, then was impressed with the formula so went back for a second shade. Ironically now, the first shade I bought (Berry) is pretty unloved, but the second shade (Peach) is now the product I consciously reach for the most. 

I love this product and I think it's fantastic value for money. The tiniest amount goes such a long way and they are highly pigmented. If we combine this with their availability, it's a win-win.

Have you tried these blushes? What's your holy grail blush? Let me know in the comments below!

Thanks for reading,

Rachel x

Twitter: rachelizabethxo

Personal blog: estoy mejor sin ti

Instagram: iRachey

Email: rachel.soshedances@gmail.com
Tumblr: lookintothestorm.tumblr.com
YouTube: soshedancesxo

The Lipstick Conundrum

If I have two beauty obsessions, they have to be nail art and lipstick. The former has already been fairly well-documented here on my little blog, but my love for lipsticks has perhaps been sitting in second place up until now.

The thing about lipstick is this: I have an addiction. I can't help it. I need to enter lipstick rehab or something because it is definitely a bit of an issue. 

Every now and then I dip into my box of rarely-used or 'special occasions only' make-up and upon hunting out an eyeliner sharpener in there recently I realised I have far too many unloved lippies sitting untouched. Sometimes it's an online order that despite hours of googling swatches just doesn't live up to the expected shade, sometimes it's just a case of ''why on earth did I buy that?" and sometimes it's purely a case of falling out of love with a product or even disliking it in the first place. 

So the question is should I get rid of them or hang onto them until I can justify binning them? There's a part of me that is convinced I'll instantly want to wear it the second it's gone, but perhaps that would only happen because it had gone. Who knows?

Do you hoard any beauty products like I do? Are you also a lipstick lover? Confess all and let me know in the comments below!

Thanks for reading,

Rachel x

Twitter: rachelizabethxo

Personal blog: estoy mejor sin ti

Instagram: iRachey

Email: rachel.soshedances@gmail.com
Tumblr: lookintothestorm.tumblr.com
YouTube: soshedancesxo

Seven for Seven #1

Today we're shaking things up a bit round here in my new weekly feature 'seven for seven'. I often read a blog post or watch a video that I really think deserves more reads/views, so my aim is to share seven posts/videos with you each Sunday, the idea being a week's worth of material for you to enjoy. So, here are this week's seven for seven...

Click the blue titles to go straight to their pages :)

1. Pretty (Squared)'s 'Top 5 Best Nail Polishes For Interviews'
I loved this post for so many reasons but mainly because I think it's such a small thing that can make a real difference when presenting yourself professionally. If you're job-hunting at the moment, this is definitely worth a read. 

2. Essiebutton's 'DIY Lemon & Peppermint Foot Scrub'
I enjoy a good project and I went out and made something vaguely similar to her 'recipe' (except mine was a sugar scrub) immediately after reading the post. If you're into beauty DIY or skincare then this might be right up your street.

3. The Sunday Girl's 'Soap and Glory Puffy Eye Attack Review'
I love Adrienne's blog and have done for a long time now, so chances are you'll see her links popping up on here again. As a hayfever sufferer (all year round, boo!) I am looking forward to trying this product and would never have discovered it without her review. If hayfever affects you too, go ahead and check out her review.

4. Let's MakeYuUp's 'The Nude Brigade'
Look in my make-up bag and you'll find way too many nude lipsticks, so Yu's nude-themed post was perfect for me and I'll be making a note of the shades she mentions for next time I'm browsing in Boots or Superdrug. After all, a girl can never have too many nudes right? Right! And since you agree, go ahead and have a read.

5. voussontbeauetbelle's '50 Facts About Me'
Firstly, Becca is back and I'm very excited about that. Secondly, I think we may secretly be the same person or something. Not strictly beauty related I know, but I thoroughly enjoyed this and I think you will too, so go ahead and give it a watch.

6. MammafulZo's 'The Pet Tag With Coleyyyful & Our Rabbits'
I absolutely love Zoe and Cole's channels and I've always been a bunny lover, so even though this isn't beauty related either, I loved this video and Zoe in particular is another blogger/YTer who will probably be popping up on the occasional Sunday post. And who doesn't want to watch two fluffy bunnies...? Hop on over (see what I did there?) and give it a watch.

7. Shan Murray's 'Curvy Body Problems'
A bit of a deeper post to round off the week with Shannon's open and honest post on being 'curvy'. I agreed with her post 100% and I'm sure it might set some of you off thinking too, so if you feel like you might be able to identify then head over to her blog and give her thoughtful post a read.

Do you have any blog, channel or specific post/video recommendations? Leave a link in the comments below and share with us all!

Thanks for reading,

Rachel x

Twitter: rachelizabethxo

Personal blog: estoy mejor sin ti

Instagram: iRachey

Email: rachel.soshedances@gmail.com
Tumblr: lookintothestorm.tumblr.com
YouTube: soshedancesxo

OOTD: Summer is Calling

Mint green blazer - New Look (old)
Pastel leopard print scarf - Red Herring @ Debenhams (current)
White t-shirt - H&M (old)
Jeans - New Look (current)
Gold effect bangle - Unknown
Bunting style necklace - Topshop (this year)
Ring - Topshop (this year)
Nails - Converse print, using Max Factor 'Mellow Yellow' and Rimmel 'Sweet as Sugar', 'Tangy Tangerine' and 'Marshmallow Heaven'

What have you been wearing lately? Let me know how you're dressing for the changing weather at the moment in the comments below :)

Thanks for reading,

Rachel x

Twitter: rachelizabethxo

Personal blog: estoy mejor sin ti

Instagram: iRachey

Email: rachel.soshedances@gmail.com
Tumblr: lookintothestorm.tumblr.com
YouTube: soshedancesxo

In the Magazines: June 2013

It's a little known fact that magazines - specifically those of the beauty and fashion variety - often like to draw in the consumers with freebies. The simple truth is that we all love a good freebie and the publishers know this. I've found more than one holy grail product through freebies or sample sizes given away in the glossies and I have to say, I have been known to make multiple purchases of one magazine to collect all of the shades or scents. Being such a fan, I decided to start running a monthly feature on the products you can get your hands of in the magazines, and seeing that magazines are always running a month ahead, today I present you with June's freebies...

Marie Claire: This month, MC are giving away a variety of Avon products to choose from, including (eyeliner) and a lipstick in the shade 'Smitten Red'. Evidently the lipstick has proven the most popular (in the centre of Leeds at least), as I only managed to find one copy with it included... which I snapped up as quickly as I could. I haven't worn this lipstick properly yet but I did try it on last night and I'm impressed with the pigmentation and how easily it can be applied. If you like a good, strong red then you might like this product. You'll also get a sample sachet of their (new?) BB Cream thrown in too.

InStyle: The sister magazine of MC is giving away my all time favourite nail brand this month, Nails Inc. There are three full sized shades on offer (worth £11 each!) including a light pink and the two shades that I went for, 'You're A Peach' and 'It's Red, Babez'. I'm not so much a fan of that second name, but we can ignore it for the time being. Given that these polishes are worth £11 and the magazine costs (£3.90), it would almost be criminal not to give them a go. ;)

Elle: When my uni friend Isabella and I were browsing the racks in WH Smith recently, I was absolutely thrilled to see a mini 'They're Real' mascara (yes, the famous Benefit 'holy grail' mascara). Mine recently dried out and I've been trying to use up an Urban Decay one, but to get my hands on a product worth £9 for so much less was fantastic. If you've been hearing lots about this product but not wanted to shell out £19 on a full sized product, see if you can get your hands on a copy of Elle and I promise you won't be disappointed!

Harper's Bazaar: Perhaps a bit more 'upmarket' than some magazines, but I've heard good things abut Ren Skincare recently and this month they are offering a sample of their Moroccan Rose Otto Body Cream and being a lover of rose products, I felt it would have been silly not to give it a try. I'll let you know my thoughts on this when I've tested it out.

So, that's it for magazine freebies this month. I feel like this month has almost been decided based on my favourite things haha. Will you be picking any of these up? Are you a bit of a freebie junkie? Let me know in the comments below!

Thanks for reading,

Rachel x

Twitter: rachelizabethxo

Personal blog: estoy mejor sin ti

Instagram: iRachey

Email: rachel.soshedances@gmail.com
Tumblr: lookintothestorm.tumblr.com
YouTube: soshedancesxo